On September 9th, 2012, The Wife and I took a tourist walk through Hannover known as “The Red Thread.” We didn’t finish the entire tour, but we did end up at the town hall building, where we saw a Renault Twizy electric car being charged in the parking lot. I was so impressed I had to take a picture, but the owners, an older husband and wife, walked up right at that moment. Wanting to be polite, I asked permission.
“Entschuldigung Sie bitte. Darf Ich ein bild aus deine Auto nehmen?” I asked with an American accent so thick you could hear the baseball and smell the apple pie. Luckily, the man’s gesture in response let me know I was welcome to proceed. As we were walking away, I asked my wife if I had spoken correctly.
“He understood you,” she replied. “But in Germany, we say ‘make’ a picture. Also, ‘aus’ means ‘out of,’ and ‘Auto’ is a neutral noun, rather than feminine.”
“Dammit,” I said, clenching my fist. “So, basically, I just asked that man if I could steal a picture out of his she-car?”
Click here to learn more about the term “Culture Shock.”
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Oh God, My Wife Is German. 
Ahh, don’t worry about it too much, we Germans are quite aware of the fact that German is a shit difficult language to learn. Honestly, I think the guy was over the moon you attempted the sentence in German, seeing that most Germans’ English (with the exception of your wife and myself of course) is pretty runt. I really don’t want to know what the first real-life Americans thought of my school English when I bombarded them with it.
Just keep trying, you’ll do well as long as you are not afraid.
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Thank you Sandra! I really appreciate the words of encouragement and support.
And you’re right; fear really is the biggest obstacle. Being afraid to try and speak German, or panicking whenever you try and use your German. I suffer from the latter, and tend to forget most of what I’ve learned the second I start to speak. It’s incredibly frustrating. I’m working on a blog post about it. :)
How are you doing?
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I am great, thanks for asking. Also, my German is improving by the day now that I’m back. Still working on getting my ass to Hanover before this parasite pops out of me. I’ll keep you updated.
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Awesome! Please let us know your plans!
Is this your first parasite?
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Nope, the first one is called The Little Monster though, so Parasite was still available for Number 2
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Haw!
God I love making fun of babies.
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If I may: I’m sure your school English would have impressed the snot out of any real-life American who had an inkling of what it means to express one’s self in a foreign language.
I’m not saying there aren’t any Americans who can appreciate it; just that I expect the number of Americans who have never tried to use a foreign language in practical, real-life situations far outweighs (per capita) the number of Germans — or any Europeans — who have tried it and made it work.
Anyone who giggles at a foreign accent, shaky grammar, or limited vocabulary of any attempt in a foreign language without appreciating the sheer gumption it takes to risk feeling like a schmo should be kicked in the balls like a delicious salad dressing would do.
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If I may: I’m sure your school English would have impressed the snot out of any real-life American who had an inkling of what it means to express one’s self in a foreign language.
I’m not saying there aren’t any Americans who can appreciate it; just that I expect the number of Americans who have never tried to use a foreign language in practical, real-life situations far outweighs (per capita) the number of Germans — or any Europeans — who have tried it and made it work.
Anyone who giggles at a foreign accent, shaky grammar, or limited vocabulary of any attempt in a foreign language without appreciating the sheer gumption it takes to risk feeling like a schmo should be kicked in the balls like a delicious salad dressing would do.
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Hi Cliff, thanks for your kind (up to the ball kicking bit) words.
Of course you are right, I just didn’t feel like my humble self going “Naturally, my English has always been nigh on perfect” ;-) Plus, that wouldn’t have been very encouraging for someone who – despite the fact that no-one ever should giggle at anyone trying to express him/herself in a foreign language – is afraid of just that happening.
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Another thing you should be aware of is that people value their online privacy here very highly. If you’re taking random pics of people on the street, they should not be recognisable when you publish. Same with cars. I usually blur out the license plate if it’s legible.
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Oh, excellent point. I should have thought of that. Thank you Ian!
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